Looks
by EchidnaPower
Summary: It's Ash's birthday and all of his friends have gathered together in the woods to reminisce on the time they spent traveling with their favorite Pokemon Trainer. But something's about to happen that could change the way that Ash and Misty look at each other forever…the question is, is it for the better? Strong T-rating, trying something new. Read and Review.
**Ok, this story has a strong T-rating, just so everyone is aware. This is probably the...steamiest thing I've ever written (or ever will write), but at the same time I'm kind of proud of it. I'm trying to see how much emotion I can put into something without relying on dialogue. Did I succeed? Guess we'll see won't we? I own nothing except the story.
** _

Anyone who knew Ash Ketchum knew how much value he placed on friendship. The relationships he cultivated over years of travel were things that he cherished in his heart and made sure that he kept alive no matter what. He'd keep in touch, give his friends calls, he made sure that everyone he'd come to call a close friend knew that he remembered them and that they had a friend in him. It was this mentality that made Ash so likable to so many people, and many of his younger friends did their best to try and emulate his way of life.

So it would stand to reason that if an opportunity ever arose for all of his friends from around the world to converge in one place, Ash Ketchum would be the happiest man on the face of the Earth, and ironically enough, such an opportunity did in fact arise.

With Ash celebrating his eighteenth birthday, all of his friends made it a point to contact each other and make sure that their schedules were clear so they could all arrive in Pallet Town at the same time and treat Ash to a surprise party he would never forget. The plan went off without a hitch, and as soon as he got home, Ash was greeted by a mob of familiar faces, all smiling and laughing at the look of shock he'd taken on.

But Ash wasn't happy.

Oh, he'd been very happy at first, seeing all of his friends, from Brock to Clemont, every travelling companion he'd ever had and then some made his heart soar as they all came for the sole purpose of celebrating his entrance into the legal adult club. There were laughs to be had when Ash tried beer for the first time courtesy of Gary Oak, and the black-haired trainer promptly spit it out when the taste hit his tongue.

Dawn had just about had a conniption when she was forced to go change after being showered in beer, and Ash swore that he'd never touch alcohol again after that embarrassing fiasco.

Eventually night fell, and Brock suggested the group make a campfire as a way of remembering what it was like to travel with Ash, and the idea was met with almost unanimous support...Misty's oldest sister Daisy had no desire to be out at night with the mosquitoes buzzing around. Of course, she was outvoted - and later placated by Tracey, and now all of Ash's friends were mingling around the campfire, sharing stories with each other as they relived their own adventures with Ash Ketchum.

But now, the warm and fuzzy feeling Ash had been feeling almost all day had quickly transformed into something else entirely, a sensation that he couldn't explain no matter how hard he tried. He could feel his heart beating rapidly, and his face heating up to the point where his ears felt like his Charizard was breathing on them.

And he knew it wasn't because of the campfire.

As Ash looked around the area, he saw Iris and Cilan sitting next to each other, chatting with Brock and Gary about the wonders of Kanto Pokémon. To their right he saw May and Serena good-naturedly teasing Dawn about her various suitors, apparently trying to gain some insight on who she was leaning towards getting together with, much to Dawn's dismay if her facial expression had anything to say about it.

Then he turned his head ever so slightly to the left, directly across from his position. His eyes locked onto Max - now an up-and-coming trainer in his own right - who was listening to a very animated Bonnie talk about her first experiences as a Pokémon Trainer. Judging by the smile on his face, Ash suspected that the young boy was somewhat enamored with the blonde from Kalos. He allowed himself a small smile at the scene, but then his eyes locked onto who was sitting next to Max's other side, and this person seemed to be very much in her own world.

Seeing Misty so quiet was something he was unaccustomed to, and that had prompted him to look in her direction earlier to try and figure out what was wrong with her...and that was when the cause of his lack of joviality took place.

Ash could only really describe it as a "look." His eyes had somehow locked onto Misty's right at the exact moment she'd taken a glance at him, and for a brief moment, time stood still. The moment their gazes met, Ash felt his breath catch in his throat, and his ears began to burn up as his heart began beating painfully hard in his chest. He'd never really noticed before, but in the glow of the campfire, Misty seemed almost...angelic in her appearance. Her hair seemed to be one with the glow of the fire...and her eyes...it was as if he were looking at them for the very first time, an incredible blend of blue and green that perfectly matched the ocean's hue, how fitting for someone who was one with water.

He was startled when Misty abruptly cut off their gaze by turning her head away, and he took a deep breath when he realized that he'd almost completely forgotten to breathe during their "look." Then his eyes widened as a memory came to him, and he turned his eyes towards Brock, who seemed oblivious to what had just happened. He remembered a conversation he'd had with Brock a few years ago, when the Pokémon Doctor told him what would happen when he received the look for the first time.

He just wasn't expecting it to happen with Misty.

Chancing a glance over at Misty again, he saw that she was now looking over to where Brock and Gary were talking to Iris and Cilan. He quickly turned his own head when he saw Misty glance in his direction again, mentally berating himself for crumbling so easily.

Again he looked over to Brock and Gary, and he felt his heartbeat pick up again when he saw Gary grinning...directly in Misty's direction. His eyes narrowed and his fists clenched in a sudden burst of anger, but he quickly caught himself when he realized that he was actually thinking about going over to Gary and decking him just for looking at Misty. He then moved his eyes to try and get a discreet look at the redhead, and he caught her looking at him again.

He swiftly turned his head to try and recapture that gaze again, to see if maybe it was just a fluke and it wasn't really the same "look" that Brock had told him about. He growled internally when Misty turned away again suddenly and seemed to try and refocus on what Max and Bonnie were discussing.

The black-haired trainer crossed his arms and scowled. This shouldn't have been happening, not with Misty. She was his best friend, the one that he could count on no matter what, and now just because of one...smoldering glance that had taken place between the two of them without warning or reason, they couldn't even bear to look at each other.

Then another thought came to him, _why_ was Misty unwilling to look at him again? She had no reason to be flustered after what happened...unless...his eyes widened in realization...maybe, just maybe...the look they shared affected her just as much as it did him. Shaking his head, Ash got up off the log he was sitting on and walked off, hoping against hope that no one noticed him leave since everyone was preoccupied with their own conversations.

He needed some time alone to think.

As the light of the fire began to dim behind him, Ash leaned against a tree and took a deep breath as he tried to collect his thoughts. The tension in the air had become so thick that he swore he'd be able to have a Pokémon use Cut and slice it up on a plate for him.

He closed his eyes and recalled the image of Misty at the precise moment their eyes connected, and almost immediately he felt his heartbeat start to pick up the pace all over again. The way her short hair framed her face, and how her blue-green eyes seemed to shimmer in the darkness, even her yellow hoodie seemed to help add to her beauty...which he'd just realized he had acknowledged to himself.

Misty was beautiful.

His heart rate picked up even more and his breath became short as panic began to overtake him. He thought Misty was beautiful? When had that happened? And worse, what would happen to him if Misty ever found out that looking at her made him feel this way? But she had been looking away too, so that meant she liked him back, right? But maybe Misty was actually freaking out because of Gary, he was looking at her with that insipid grin on his face.

Ash grabbed his head and suppressed a scream, his mind was being pulled in so many different directions that he was actually getting a headache, and the heat burning his face from the blood racing through his body was beginning to actually hurt.

He needed to get to Brock, he'd be able to explain everything.

Ash turned to run back to the campfire, but he was suddenly knocked to the ground after he rammed into something. He groaned and shook his head, and when he opened his eyes, they widened when he saw that he hadn't run into some _thing_ , it was actually some _one._

Misty.

All of a sudden they were back where they started, staring into each other's eyes and frozen in place. This time however, Ash fought to keep their gaze locked as he slowly crawled over to her. Misty wasn't breaking the eye contact, encouraging him to continue...whatever was going on between them, he felt this urge to get closer.

Finally, Ash found himself sitting right in front of the flustered Gym Leader. He could hear the blood pumping in his ears, and again that now familiar heat enveloped his whole face. She was just so beautiful, her eyes...Ash felt himself getting lost in those eyes, and he felt this urge to touch her in a way he never had before.

As he reached up to touch her face, Misty suddenly broke their gaze and turned her head away with a small squeak. But this time Ash refused to let it go, and he gently placed his hand on her cheek and turned her head back to him. Her skin felt so soft against his fingers, and feeling her breath against his face made his arms break out in goosebumps.

He almost stopped when he felt her shudder against his touch, but when he started to pull his hand away, she gave a small moan and seemed to follow it. The trainer looked into Misty's eyes, and he saw an expression from her that he'd never seen before...it was almost like she _wanted_ him to touch her.

He placed his hand back on her cheek, and she leaned into his touch with her eyes closed and a tiny smile gracing her features...then when her eyes opened again, Ash felt his breath catch in his throat, the look she was giving him now...the closest comparison he could come up with was whenever Brock looked at a girl that he was...in love with.

Misty was in love with him?

Ash's throat felt incredibly dry now, all he could think about was the girl in front of him. He'd never felt quite like this before in his life, and as strange as it was...part of him just knew that it was right. He slowly leaned in with his eyes half-lidded, and he was just able to see Misty close her own eyes and start leaning in to meet him halfway.

He mentally braced himself for whatever was about to happen...but then their lips touched, and a whole new world of feelings exploded inside of him. He felt a tingling sensation all throughout his body, and then he felt the pressure on his lips increase as Misty started leaning in further.

By now, any cognitive ability had left the black-haired trainer, as he closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in closer to him as instinct took over his actions. He gently suckled on her bottom lip, prompting a low moan from the redhead who had just wrapped her arms around his torso.

In response, Ash slowly snaked his hand underneath her shirt, placing his hand on the small of her back and pulling her even closer to his body, making it so now his chest was now pressed against her own soft assets, causing even more new sensations to flood his synapses. He was momentarily shocked when he felt Misty's tongue try to enter his mouth, but he quickly recovered and allowed it to enter, their tongues now wrestling with each other in an intricate dance.

Ash began to lower his hand on her body, feeling her squirm at his touch as he made his way down to her rear end...in just a moment, they would take a step that neither of them could have ever dreamed of taking, but knew that they wanted it.

Then it all stopped.

They heard their names being called from the campsite, and both pairs of eyes shot open in response and they simultaneously shouted out a shaky response. Then the two looked at each other again, and once more the awkwardness returned, stronger than ever in light of what they had just done...and potentially were about to do.

As the black-haired trainer caught his breath from the impromptu makeout session, he fought to remember exactly what it was that had just happened. It was as if he'd completely lost control of himself, possessed by some unknown force that he couldn't even begin to comprehend. Then he heard a small giggle, and he looked to see Misty blushing brightly with a smile plastered on her face.

Ash felt a pang in his chest...he wanted to experience those sensations again, he'd never felt so...turned on, he supposed the right phrase was, and the very thought that Misty seemed to enjoy it just as much as he did excited him in its own special way. He opened his mouth to say something, but then he felt Misty's finger pressed against his lips.

She shook her head at him, and then she leaned in and gave him a small buss on the cheek, smiling at him with her eyes, prompting him to smile as well. Then he got up off the grass and held out his hand to her, and she gladly took it and stood up to face him. Ash's happiness had returned to him now tenfold in revelation of these new feelings that had just taken root in his heart, as he took her hand and slowly walked back to the campsite.

There was no doubt in his mind now that the two of them had a lot to talk about, what they had just experienced was something special that couldn't be brushed off as nothing, it was just too special. But he knew that the discussion they'd share later would be a good one, as he could tell that this wasn't only special for him, but for her as well.

Words weren't needed...he could tell just from the look in her eyes.  
_

 **A/N: Ahem...yeah...so I tried to make the ending more sweet than anything else, but hoo boy...that middle part. Don't expect me to make a habit out of writing stuff like that, that's a little too far out of my comfort zone I think. I honestly don't know if I botched it completely. But, that's up to you the readers to decide. So leave a review, tell me what you think. And next time, I'll have a story/update that's more along the lines of what I'm known for. As always, let's meet back next time, shall we?**


End file.
